Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 12-3:
The
25 fastest grow-
ing cities in the
United States,
1990-1998.
Giving a Good Impression
Decisions to move to or vacation in particular destinations tend to be based largely on the knowledge
and impressions people have about them. Different people have different attitudes toward different
places. Some locales may impress you as desirable places to live, some may be undesirable, and some
may make no impression one way or the other. Sometimes these attitudes are based on personal ex-
perience and verifiable facts (objective reality), and sometimes they are based on what people have
heard or read or imagine to be the case (subjective reality). When you think about it, don't you have
strong positive or negative feelings about some places, including ones you have never visited?
Playing the mental game
Mental maps
are tools that geographers use to display and analyze the impressions (subjective
realities) that people have about different locations. The example provided in Figure 12-4
shows a mental map of the United States that reflects attitudes of college students who live in
New York City. Now, before somebody gets upset and writes a nasty letter to the publisher or
me, remember that this map reflects attitudes that some people have toward places that per-
haps they have never visited and about which they may have no direct personal knowledge.
Thus, what they think they know about a given state or region may have no basis in reality.
Moreover, just as some New Yorkers have negatives images about certain parts of the country,
it's also true that people in other parts of the country have very negative attitudes toward New
York.
